A good night's sleep the key to happier workers

Research from think-tank Reventure found that only 54 per cent of Aussie workers were getting enough shut-eye.

Workplace Wellbeing, a national survey of more than 1000 Australian workers, showed satisfied sleepers were happier in all areas of their lives.

Those not getting enough quality sleep were more likely to say they felt as though their lives had no sense of meaning.

Lead researcher Dr Lindsay McMillan said the importance of sleep should not be overlooked and called on employers to make sure staff were rested and not overly stressed so they could sleep well.

"Sleep is a key part in fostering wellbeing - over half of the Australian workers we surveyed believed that having time for rest and relaxation contributes to high levels of personal wellbeing,” he said.

"Thirty-seven per cent of dissatisfied sleepers said they were either extremely or very stressed about work - and that is something business leaders should not ignore.

"The effect work stress has on sleep can form a vicious cycle and while some large workplaces have implemented innovations like sleep pods, there are some more basic measures leaders can take.

"Make sure workloads are manageable and that expectations are reasonable, minimise emails after hours and take a look at overtime hours - these may be eating into your workers' rest.”